BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- A traffic accident on the way to practice sent five Ramsay football players to the hospital on Friday evening. The accident resulted in a flipped car.

Ramsay senior Alexander McGhee was not involved in the accident, but was on the team bus that passed by at approximately 5 p.m. as it happened. The team was on its way to Lawson Field for a regular Friday practice when they saw a teammate's flipped red SUV on Montclair Road.

According to McGhee, reports on the scene said the car flipped at least "four or five" times.

The players involved in the accident were taken to UAB hospital for minor injuries as a precaution. The boys met their teammates at UAB shortly after the accident, he said.

"They are all OK," McGhee said. "All five of them made it out good. Everybody was released from the hospital yesterday except for (Cordell Jones) and he's expected to be released today. But everyone else made it out OK with minor injuries."

Five starters were taken to UAB hospital after a flipped-car accident off Montclair Road on the way to football practice at Lawson Field in Birmingham, Alabama on August 16, 2014. Four of them were promplty released. The fifth member of the team is scheduled to be released on Saturday. (Roy S. Johnson/rjohnson@al.com)

Jones is a sophomore starter at defensive end. McGhee said the team learned he suffered a dislocated shoulder in the accident.

Starting defensive tackle Brandon Davis was also in the car. McGhee said he had a nagging hamstring injury prior to the accident and the accident on Friday evening aggravated that issue. Junior wide receiver Leland Johnson was driving his father's car.

McGhee shared the version he heard from the guys in the car about the accident. He detailed that Jones was the only one of his teammates unable to make it out of the car on their own.

"Somebody pulled in front on them and they were on a green light," he said. "You know the other side of the road had oncoming traffic, but you can turn left when no one else is coming. Somebody jumped in front of them and turned. He swerved trying not to hit them and their car flipped."

McGhee said Johnson hurt his elbow, but was not certain of the actual diagnosis. Junior defensive backs Joshua Carter and Earnest Kenty were also in the car. According to McGhee, Carter suffered no injuries. Kenty just had "a cut to the back of his head."

McGhee speculated at least three of the starters could make it back by the season opener. Ramsay coach Rueben Nelson did not immediately return a call seeking comment on the accident, but McGhee shared the thoughts he conveyed to the boys afterward.

"He was pretty much happy that everyone was still alive because this could have been a very tragic accident," McGhee said. "Everyone is not promised to walk away from an incident like that. He said for all five players to walk away from an accident like that without major injuries is truly a blessing. When we saw the accident, we just prayed for everyone to be OK and God answered all our prayers."

Ramsay had an abbreviated practice on Friday. The scheduled practice for today has been cancelled. The Rams play Helena and John Carroll in a scrimmage game this week. The first game of the season will be on Aug. 29 against Jackson-Olin.

McGhee said some players do not ride on the bus with the rest of the team, but choose to drive their own personal vehicles because they already live on the South side of town in close proximity to Lawson Field.

When Nelson was reached, he confirmed McGhee's description of the events and also shared his thoughts on the accident.

"The city does a great job with providing us the transportation to get over there," Nelson said. "This wasn't because of a lack of transportation available in this case, but from here going out we are going to stress that the kids ride buses because we all know the bus in the safest means of transportation for these kids."

It was a harrowing sight for Nelson. He had spent some time with Jones at the hospital on Saturday and confirmed Jones was scheduled to be released later in the day.

"I have seen injuries before but this was the absolute scariest thing I have ever witnessed as a coach and as a person who is responsible for children," Nelson said. "I am just so happy that this wasn't as bad as it could have been."

UPDATED on 2:04 PM: Ramsay coach Rueben Nelson was reached and shared his thoughts on the events on Friday evening, including the Ramsay team bus policy going forward.